M uriquis often start their day by hugging one another. Just this year, the southern muriqui Brachyteles arachnoides joined them on that list. Like many endangered species, the combined pressures of deforestation, fragmented habitats and hunting have steadily driven populations downward.
By best estimates, less than 2, of both muriqui species remain. On the surface, these surviving monkeys seem fortunate.
Many populations live in state parks, federal reserves, or privately owned areas where they are protected. The woolly-coated creatures are also considered a flagship species of the Atlantic forest, and included in national and regional action plans for conservation.
Still, the monkeys need even greater support to avoid slipping from their Most Endangered status toward extinction. Primate Program. The film highlights the plight of muriquis and lion tamarins. When Strier first saw the muriquis, she was utterly captivated; the animals transformed her life. Today, the Caratinga preserve and research station, now under her leadership and supported by her many colleagues, can boast one of the longest-running primate studies in South America.
However, years of observing these monkeys living in easygoing groups, without dominance hierarchies among males or females, pointed toward other possibilities, which Strier detailed in her first book, Faces in the Forest.
